Bears exposed to plague found in Paradise

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Bears coming into town to get trash have become a common problem on the ridge. To this newspaper’s knowledge, this bear is not connected to the bears tested for plague by the Department of Public Health. - Courtesy of Staci Galla

A large bear caught on camera prowling a Magalia property in September. To this newspaper’s knowledge, this bear is not connected to the bears tested for plague by the state. - Courtesy of Dan Roskopf

Paradise >> Two black bears exposed to the plague were found in Paradise, according to the California Department of Public Health.

The department collected blood in September from two bears killed under depredation permits, and the samples tested positive for antibodies to Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that causes plague.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife issued the depredation permits. Tanya Espinosa, spokesperson for U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, said she could not reveal the location the bears were found because they were not on public lands.

They were removed by Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services because they were damaging private lands and an agricultural resource, Espinosa said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services routinely submits blood samples from bears and other predators it encounters in wildlife management activities. This is, in part, to determine whether they have been exposed to plague in the past.

Plague is a flea-borne disease spread through contact with infected animals, dead or alive, and flea bites. In the 1300s, it killed millions in Europe, and took on the name of the Black Death. Symptoms include fever, nausea, headaches, weakness and swollen, tender lymph nodes. If caught early, it’s treatable in the modern age with antibiotics.

Predators like bears often prey on rodents, which are the primary carriers of plague, according to the state Public Health Department. When bears scavenge a plague-infected rodent, they are exposed to plague bacteria and develop antibodies. These bears were infected with the bacteria that causes plague, but unlike humans, bears do not become ill from plague infection, according to the state.

The public health department can get an indication of plague activity in a geographic area by testing bear blood samples and finding plague antibodies. Positive samples help identify areas where the state department or local agencies can focus rodent surveillance activities to determine the risk to humans and if there is increased plague activity.

Plague routinely occurs in the Sierra Nevada, where the state public health department suspects the bears were most likely exposed, in the mountains east of Paradise. It’s hard to pin down exactly where the plague exposure occurred because bears have large home ranges, according to the department.

Historically, about 12 percent of bear samples have tested positive for plague antibodies, according to California Department of Public Health. Positive bear samples have been found in 32 counties in California.

Safety tips

The state public health office said in an email to this newspaper that “no specific response is needed to this particular finding, but residents should always minimize contact with ground squirrels, chipmunks and other rodents that can carry plague in foothill and mountainous areas of California.”

Any time people visit recreational sites in mountainous areas, they should look for plague information postings and practice preventative measures:

• Do not feed or touch wild animals

• Avoid animal fleas by not camping or resting near animal burrows

• Report sick or dead animals to park, forest or local health authorities.